NITDA partners DAWN Commission to push digital transformation across Southwest Nigeria

The National Information Technology Development Agency has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Development Agenda for Western Nigeria Commission to accelerate digital skills development and strengthen innovation infrastructure across all six Southwest states.

NITDA disclosed this via a statement released on Thursday.

The agreement, formalised at a signing ceremony attended by the leadership of both organisations on Wednesday, is designed to align national technology policy with regional execution.

The aim is to combine the resources of both bodies to build a coordinated roadmap for digital transformation across the Southwest.

What they are saying

NITDA Director General Kashifu Inuwa said regional cooperation is very important to unlocking Nigeria’s huge human capital and ensuring ordinary citizens can participate meaningfully in the digital economy.

• Inuwa noted that building strategic bridges between national policy and regional execution is exactly what allows everyday citizens to participate in the modern digital economy.
• The NITDA Director added that strategic partnerships are critical to unlocking innovation and driving sustainable development nationwide.

DAWN Commission Director General Dr. Seye Oyeleye welcomed the agreement, describing it as a launchpad for advancing the country’s digital literacy goals at the regional level.

He described the MoU as a powerful platform for advancing the nation’s digital literacy goals and expressed confidence in what the two organisations can achieve together.

More insights

The partnership is structured around three core objectives: accelerating digital skills development across the region, strengthening existing local innovation hubs, and creating a cohesive regional roadmap for digital transformation.

Both organisations said the collaboration is built on a mutual commitment to ensuring no one is left behind in the digital age, with the MoU framed as a mechanism for translating national technology ambitions into tangible outcomes at the community level.

By syncing NITDA’s national technology mandate with DAWN Commission’s regional reach across Ogun, Oyo, Osun, Ekiti, Ondo, and Lagos states, the two bodies said they aim to create lasting economic opportunities through coordinated, inclusive digital development.

What you should know

The NITDA-DAWN partnership follows a pattern of federal technology agencies deepening collaboration with regional bodies to push digital inclusion beyond Lagos and Abuja.

Earlier this month, Nairametrics reported that NITDA established the Renewed Hope Innovation Hub at Obafemi Awolowo University in Ile-Ife. The hub is a fully equipped facility housing laboratories for Artificial Intelligence, Robotics, Additive Manufacturing, and the Internet of Things.

The hub was commissioned as part of the same broader effort to seed technology infrastructure across the Southwest and reduce the concentration of digital opportunity in Nigeria’s major cities.